Long Shot
by Theodore is Rice
Summary: Nico almost dies, Will and Nico play capture the flag together, and the two sit down under the stars to talk. Is happiness such a long shot for Nico after all? Written with bluelove22. SOLANGELO FEELS


Falter: Um, I don't really have anything to say except: WARNING. MASSIVE SOLANGELO FEELS. I had a lot of fun writing this, and, um, have fun with the feels. Me and blue were making so many Three Days Grace References as we wrote this. Not in the story, but as we were talking. Anyhow, we may write a sequel. It's up to blue, so no promises.

bluelove22: Hi people! If you've read my other stuff then I'm sure you'll love this and if you haven't well then at least you won't get mad that I have been working on this instead of The Music Curse *looks away nervously* this was just more fun... Falter is freaking awesome and I really enjoyed writing with her so, hey, a sequel is a high possibility. Anyway, enjoy~ Love, blue.

Falter: Thank you for compliment :3

Falter, again: Well, we don't own Solangelo... sadly... Don't you wish we did? We also *sniff* don't own PJO, HoO, or anything canon. Rick Riordan owns that good stuff...

bluelove22: Title inspired by Long Shot by Kelly Clarkson (the song makes me think of Solangelo, okay?).

Falter: ENJOY OKAY YEAH

~ Falter out

Long Shot

Nico di Angelo, to the demigods at Camp Half-blood, was somewhat of a mystery. A wild card, or a puzzle that was too complex to solve.

No, it wasn't because he was a son of Hades, the ruler of the Underworld. It wasn't because he got his father to join the Olympians in the battle against Kronos, rescued Percy from a cell in the Underworld, gave Percy the key to defeat Kronos, was imprisoned in a jar for days with only pomegranate seeds, or was the only one to know about both demigod camps before any of the other demigods.

Even after hearing about how he had single-handedly survived Tartarus, nobody knew him for who he really was. They knew about what he had done and accomplished, sure, but nobody really asked about him.

Until Will Solace came around and forced Nico out of his comfort zone. The blonde had barged into his life, questioned his decisions, and ordered him around, which was something Nico certainly was not used to.

Maybe it was because being a son of the obnoxious god Apollo made him just as annoying as his father, or maybe it was because Will was just as stubborn as Nico himself. It hardly mattered now. Since Nico had been forced into the infirmary for three days a couple of weeks ago, it seemed that Will was there to stay. And to lecture him.

The son of Apollo followed him around like a lost hellhound pup, commenting on what he ate, how he dressed, and what was or was not healthy for him. He acted like a doctor twenty-four/seven, and at first it irked Nico:

"Nico! What did I tell you about eating McDonald's? It's going to make you fat and unhealthy. Here, eat some salad. Or drink juice instead of smoothies. Do you have any idea how much sugar those things have?! It's going to give you a heart attack! Hey! Don't you dare put that burger in your mouth. Oh, you did it now. What?! Get back here, Mister di Angelo!"

"Seriously, di Angelo, are all the clothes you own black? It's eighty or ninety degrees out here, and if you pass out from a heat stroke because you think you're only allowed to wear clothes the color of Hades' robes, then you're going to be sentenced to the infirmary for another three days, and you are absolutely not going to leave the bed! Ooh, I have a nice orange shirt that you could wear. Don't you roll your eyes at me."

"Death Boy, you shouldn't be sparring so soon after getting out of the infirmary. You wouldn't want those stitches I redid for you to rip, would you? Come on, let's go help people in the infirmary."

As one could tell, it was definitely not common for someone to tell Nico di Angelo what to do, and he didn't know what he felt about it. On the one hand, it bothered him. No one had ever concerned themselves with his well-being before (Bianca and Hazel excluded). Why should someone like Will care about him? It made no sense. On the other hand, even if he couldn't quite understand why the son of Apollo cared for him it felt nice to know he was cared for. Or rather, have someone nag him like an evil stepmother.

Over the past few weeks, Nico had gotten used to Will's constant corrections of how he would act. After all, it was in an Apollo kid's nature to be concerned about health. Maybe Nico had actually grown fond of Will's constant concern and kindness. After all, he was only worrying for a friend, right?

However, after today's events, perhaps "friendly concern" wasn't a sufficient definition for what Will was showing him.

"Nico!" A voice yelled to him.

The son of Hades winced from where he laid sprawled out on the ground. He knew that voice very well. In fact, he heard it every day.

"Solace," he stated calmly while attempting pull himself up. He didn't get very far though, because when he tried to support his weight with his palms, his hands sank straight into the dirt below. Immediately Nico's brown eyes rose to meet Will's blue ones. "Um, it's really not as bad as it looks," he lied.

Will shook his head in disbelief and concern, dropping to the ground and quickly trying to take Nico's intangible hands in his own. He instead put his hands above the space where Nico's should be and said nothing while he hummed a hymn to his father to effectively chase the darkness away.

Will, other than humming the hymn, stayed silent. It was a good thing too, because if Nico had to hear how he'd messed up again and made Will worry, he wouldn't have the heart to deny it.

In Nico's own defense, he hadn't meant to dive (and almost melt) into the shadows to rescue a twelve year-old girl that had started to lose her grip on the lava wall. She would have lived, and come out with quite a few nasty burns, just like many of the other demigods that had attempted to climb the monstrosity that was known as the rock wall. Something about hearing her scream from where Will and he were watching from the sidelines (they were there because Cecil and Lou Ellen decided to race up the the course and had wanted Nico and Will to watch) had just gotten to him.

Looking back on it, he had no idea what he was thinking. Maybe he was so used to shadow-traveling that, in a moment of danger, he forgot how harmful it would be to use his demigod powers. It made sense, since up until recently there hadn't been a downside to using his powers.

Finally, once the prying eyes that had found the two boys so interesting lessened, Will gently helped Nico stand up. He dusted his jeans off and looked at Will. The taller demigod opened his mouth to talk.

"You really need to learn to take care of yourself." And so the lecture began. "While I think it's great you saved Gina from a nasty fall, what would have happened if you'd been stuck in the shadows permanently? Don't you realize you should be your top priority? You could have died, Nico!"

Nico stared at the son of Apollo with a dumbfounded look on his face. From the corner of his eyes he could see the girl he had rescued standing nearby, looking as if she wanted to thank him but was too scared to approach. Cecil, Lou Ellen, and a few others were within talking distance but were purposefully staying out of what sure was to turn into an arguement soon.

"Well, what if she wasn't fine? How am I more important than someone who could possibly have a lot of friends as she goes on in life, and who probably has family? At least she would be more missed than me if I had faded," Nico growled.

Will was trying to hide his anger. "You think that _I_ don't care about you? What about Reyna, the Seven, everyone else that you've touched? The rest of the campers!"

Nico snapped. "The rest of the campers ignore me. They either only want to be my friends to get closer to the Seven or pay attention to me when they want me to fight for them. Other than that they just look at me weirdly when I walk by. It's like I'm diseased. How's that for caring, Solace?"

"I care about you, Nico." Will said, hurt clear in his voice. "What would I have done if you had faded?"

Nico looked at his hands, which were freezing but at least solid. "I don't know. Find another friend?"

Will frowned. "I don't want another friend. You're a good friend."

The younger demigod wasn't sure how to respond to that. "Will..."

"Even though you eat that awful fast food, you wear black clothes in all conditions, and you don't listen to a word I say-"

"Okay, I get it, Solace. Enough with the doctor moment, okay? But really. My death would probably make some people happy. Before you rant, I'm not suicidal. I'm just stating a fact. Some demigods hate me. Oh, and so do Demeter and Persephone. We can throw Uncle Zeus into the mix while we're at it."

"Zeus hates everyone," Will chuckled, but then turned serious. "Anyway, Nico, this time I'm putting my foot down. Absolutely no shadow traveling for one month unless you absolutely have to, as in you'll die without using them. Doctor's orders, di Angelo."

Nico groaned. "I hate it when you do that! It's always 'doctor's orders'. What next? Will you be tucking me in at night so I can get enough sleep?" It was an offhanded comment, but it made Will blush.

"Uh... no. Why would you say that? Do you want me to?" Will asked, confused.

"W-what? No! It was just a joke," Nico protested. _Honestly_ , he thought. _Will wouldn't know sarcasm if it bit him in the face._ _His very handsome, adorable face... No, stop thinking like that! He's your friend, not someone to fawn over like a young schoolgirl. Or in my case a young schoolboy._ _Agh, even my thought aren't as dark anymore. Schoolboy? But in all defense, Will is pretty hot... Wait, what?_

Gods, first Percy Jackson and now a son of Apollo. His life was really going to Tartarus.

In all seriousness, maybe he wouldn't mind being held by the blonde demigod... no. What was going on in Nico's head? Will couldn't possibly like him romantically, and Nico wasn't about to ruin this purely _platonic_ relationship with him. Yep, yep. Just friends. Nothing more. And as much as it pained him to think that, he knew it was true because it had to be true. Why would the tall, admittedly good looking, tan, blonde son of the sun god, the god of light, fall for a child of the Underworld, of darkness? Wouldn't Will want to stay away from darkness?

And yet here he was, giving Nico a shoulder to lean on.

"Come on, Nico," ordered Will. All the tension from before seemed to have gone. "Let's get you to the infirmary and heal you up. I don't want you to become all ghostly, and... um... reach-through? I mean, if someone is see through, you can see through them. If someone's reach through, you can reach through them, right?" He rambled about this topic, among other trivial matters, as they walked toward the infirmary. It was actually so amusing, and maybe even a bit cute, that Nico stopped himself from explaining that the correct word would be intangible because you could see his hands but not touch him.

That hardly mattered though. As long as Will was talking with his melodic, carefree voice then Nico would listen to him ramble for hours. He would let Will believe that the word 'reach-through' existed, because it was funny to watch him stumble over the word.

Once they reached the infirmary, Will ushered Nico into the second room. He made Nico lie down on a bed in the corner. "Okay, Nico. You're not... reach-through... anymore, right?" Interrogated Will, scribbling the question down on a notepad.

Nico shook his head, smiling at the word. "Nope. I can feel and touch; the whole works." He leaned over and brushed Will's arm, unintentionally causing him to shiver. Goosebumps appeared on Will's upper arm and he moved it so that he was holding the clipboard with the arm that Nico had touched.

"Okay. Do you feel colder than normal, or are you dizzy or feeling sick in any way?" Again, Will wrote this question down.

Eyebrow raised, Nico just stared at Will. Had he not just felt how Nico's hand basically felt that of a cold corpse? Sure he didn't feel cold himself, he was used to feeling numb unless he was actually in the process of shadow-traveling, but to everyone else he was always cold to the touch.

He briefly contemplated saying that he was feeling fine, but he'd decided a long time ago to be honest with Will.

"Uh, yes to feeling cold, but it's pretty normal for me. I almost became a living shadow, or rather a ghost, after all. I'm used to it though. It just feels like I'm numb, but I can tell that I'm cold. I don't feel dizzy, just faint. Shadow-traveling does tire me out, Will. You should know that by now," answered Nico. As he spoke, Will listened to each word with rapt attention. He scribbled part of Nico's answer down. It was just enough to decipher a meaning, but for the rest of the time, Will just listened. It took him a few seconds to notice that Nico had stopped talking and and was looking at him a little strangely.

"Okay, that's... peculiar." He was probably going to say weird or strange, but had changed his mind last second as to not offend his patient and friend. "Um, I'll just take your temperature now." Will turned around and got the thermometer off of the shelf. He stuck it in Nico's mouth without warning, and the latter almost spit it out.

Once his temperature (a low 93 degrees Fahrenheit) was taken and Will threw some blankets on him, Nico was complaining about being bored and hungry.

"Also, why do you have thermometers that you stick in a person's mouth, instead of the ones you put in your ear?" Wondered the dark-haired demigod.

"I don't know," replied Will honestly. "We just do, I guess."

Nico shrugged. "Hey, Will. I'm sick and should be happy, right?"

Will nodded. "Yeah..."

Nico looked at Will with his best puppy dog eyes. "Can I have McDonald's?" Will looked scandalized.

"Absolutely not, di Angelo!" Will scolded him. "You just almost died and all you can think of is extremely unhealthy food? What's wrong with your mind?"

Nico smirked. Will was cute when he got all mad. Nico noticed the slight tinge of red on his cheeks, the way his eyebrows scrunched up when he was frustrated. Those facts just made Nico want the taller demigod even more, and it hurt his heart to know that Will was probably straight. Even if he wasn't, he wouldn't fall for a wild card like Nico.

 _Stop_ , he told himself. If he kept thinking that, negativity would make him want to fade into the shadows, and he really didn't want that. Sure, he liked the cold rush of shadow-traveling, but to actually be a shadow? To be stripped of your identity, your name, and everything that made a person who they were? No thank you.

"Anyway," Will continued after he'd calmed down a little, "before you so ludicrously asked for McDonald's, I was going to ask if you wanted to get dinner with me. I was thinking we could grab some food and then head out to the strawberry fields to have a picnic of sorts. That way you'll be exposed to more sun, both warming you up and aiding in chasing the darkness away." At this point he risked a glance at the boy in question. "I mean, only if you're interested. I don't want to force you into anything."

Interested? Did he even have to ask? Of course Nico would go.

"That sounds good," he calmly replied. Nico looked down and hoped that Will didn't notice the pink color lightly dusting his cheeks. He looked up at Will's face again, grinning.

Both of them were smiling like the two goofballs they were at the notion of their totally-not-a-date-it's-purely-for-medical-purposes-only-outing. After a few moments though, Will went off to make sure the girl who had been rescued was okay. Even if Nico had saved her from falling and burning herself, pulling someone who had never traveled through the shadows before into, well, the shadows, could shake anyone up, even the strongest of demigods. Well, now that Nico thought about it, Percy had loved shadow-traveling.

Some time later, after Nico had napped briefly and Will had taken to packing enough food for the two of them, they found themselves brushing against each other (and blushing, for Will's part) as they walked to the strawberry fields. Above them, the sun was low in the sky as it neared the horizon. Will noticed this and smiled. It was still warm outside, the perfect weather for a picnic.

"It looks like we still have a good two hours before Aunt Artemis takes over for my dad. I mean, at least from our standpoint," he corrected himself before gazing fondly at the cloudless sky. "I wonder if he's really up there right now. Do you think he looks down at camp every now and then? He's never visited his children in the time I've been here, but I like to think he cares about us at least a little bit. I don't know, but we're here now. I wonder if I look like him," he pondered.

Nico smirked. "You totally do, Solace. That's one more annoying face I see a lot."

Will grinned at him and kept walking as they looked for a good place to put the blanket down.

He abruptly put the basket he had borrowed from the Athena Cabin down and laid out the blanket he'd brought for them to sit on. Once he moved the basket onto the blanket, he looked to Nico with a grin on his face before gesturing to the site with both arms like he was presenting a grand dinner (which for Nico it was one).

"You may take a seat now, Death Boy." Will had said it with a butchered British accent, but the whole Death Breath nickname had ruined the moment.

Rolling his eyes, Nico playfully shoved his crush friend, but listened to him all the same.

For the next hour or so, the two boys ate while chatting about nothing in particular. Will told Nico about the time his brother Austin cursed an Ares camper into speaking in rhyming couplets for a few days, and Nico told Will about how Hades had gotten him skeleton cats that transformed into saber tooth tigers for his thirteenth birthday. He also told Will how the skeleton cats had been created. All the while, they moved closer and closer to each other, neither one of them commenting on how their knees, shoulders, and eventually hands were touching.

"So," Will drawled as he slipped his warm hand into Nico's cool one for 'medical reasons', "all this time in the sun has helped the darkness recede wonderfully. I can barely feel it anymore."

Nico said nothing, instead staring at their interlocked hands. It was only after a minute or so of peaceful silence had passed that he broke into a goofy grin.

"You know you're still holding my hand, right?" asked Nico.

The blonde shrugged. "You felt cold. I figured you needed warming up."

"I'm always cold," retorted Nico, smiling.

"Well, I'm always warm."

"More like hot," Nico muttered under his breath. To his embarrassment, Will had seemed to have heard the comment and wiggled an eyebrow at him suggestively.

"Oh, really?" Nervousness shot through the younger of the two when Will suddenly turned Nico towards him. Their faces were only a few inches away and the mischevious glint in Will's eyes made Nico shiver. Whether in nervousity or anticipation he couldn't tell. "I have to say, Death Boy, even if you're cool to the touch you're way hotter than me when it comes to good looks."

For a second, Nico didn't react. He could only stare dumbly as he thought of how to respond. In his fifteen years of life he'd never had to worry about someone... flirting with him? At least he thought that what Will was doing. Friends didn't usually call each other hot unless you were Jason and Percy. Then, it was normal.

"Um..." Before he could think of what to say, Will spoke for him.

"Holy Hera, I butchered it, didn't I? I was trying to think of something cool to say but I think I just made a moron of myself. Ugh." The blonde had gone from being almost smooth and collected to a babbling _idiota_. Nico tried not to smirk but failed. "Also, if I made you feel uncomfortable in any way, shape, or form, or if I did happen to read you wrong and you're not interested in being more than friends, I sincerely apologize! Don't be mad at me for this, please?"

 _Wait, what? He just said..._

"You want to be more than friends?" Nico asked, dumbfounded.

Rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly, Will had the decency to blush. "Um, yeah, that's kind of what I was saying."

His cheeks were even more pink than before. "But, only if you want to be, all right?"

Nico nodded slowly. Will's smile was small and hopeful, which, to Nico, made Will about ten times cuter. Before he stopped himself, he blurted out, "You're cute when you act all shy."

Both boys' faces were bright red as they stared at each other. "Wow..." Will said. "I really didn't expect that, Nico." He looked hurt.

Nico looked at him, confused. Then Will said something that made him bust a gut. "I thought I was hot, not cute," he pouted. "I'm the son of Apollo, for the gods' sakes."

Nico was laughing his ass off and rolling around in the strawberry patch, something he'd never imagined himself doing after everything he'd been through. Then Will had an evil idea. He crawled up to Nico and poked him in the side. Nico recoiled and rolled away. That was just proof that he was ticklish. Will poked him in the ribs again and Nico's laughing increased by about ten times. Will jumped on top of Nico and tickled him silly.

"Stop!" Nico finally gasped. Will's evil smile told him that this torture was going to go on for much longer, now that he knew Nico's fatal flaw. It was good to be more than friends, Will decided.

After a few more minutes of tickling, Nico protesting but being forced to laugh the entire time anyway, the two eventually relaxed back onto the blanket. They stared up at the sky as the sun neared the edge of the horizon for several moments until Will softly cut into the silence.

"So," his words were quiet and sincere, "I know you're from the nineteen-thirties and you're probably still taking a lot of this in, but now that we're officially dating do you think..."

"Yes?"

The son of Hades was expecting something along the lines of kissing, but what Will asked made him burst out laughing once more.

"Can we do the whole openly dating thing like holding hands in public, going on dates and sitting together at the campfire, and, I dunno, do whatever couples do?"

Nico looked at him strangely. "Yeah, why'd you have to ask?"

Will blushed brightly, and even in the dim light, Nico could see the blood rushing to his cheeks. "Well... I'm not really open about my sexuality... I haven't... what do you call it? Come out of the closet yet."

"And you think I have?" Nico smiled at him. "Only Jason, Annabeth, Percy, Reyna, and Coach Hedge know about be and I only really told two of them. Perhaps... we could go to the campfire as a couple?"

Will looked as if he was pondering this. "Okay, but when we get thrown into the lake as per tradition I get to warm you back up. Count on it. You aren't getting a cold on my watch."

Nico smirked. "So, you think I need warming up, huh? I need to stay cool, Will."

Will laughed. "As if. I'm way cooler than you, di Angelo."

"Then you admit that I'm hotter than you!" Nico said with a crazy grin.

The blonde put up a hand in protest, but after a second he deflated. "You tricked me."

"Yup," quipped Nico. "I may be an old geezer from the thirties, but I'm clever."

Will smiled at him. "Yeah, you are." He took Nico's hand and held it on his chest. Nico smiled back. Then, before something like their first kiss could occur, the telltale sound of footsteps reached Nico's fine-tuned ears. In seconds he had drawn back from Will and was looking around the field for the source of the noise.

"Nico?" Jason appeared from the trees, glasses slightly crooked from walking through the undergrowth. "Oh, there you are. Hi, Will."

"Hi, Jason! What do you want with my boyfriend?"

Jason's electric blue eyes twinkled like he'd suspected this was going to happen (which he probably did). "I was wondering if he, and you for that matter, wanted to be on my team tonight for capture the flag. I've already recruited the Aphrodite, Ares, and Hephaestus cabins so far. I was planning on getting the Hypnos and Demeter cabins to join my side next, while Percy is talking to the Hermes and Hecate counselors."

"That means I'll have to deal with Lou Ellen and Cecil either turning me into a pig or stealing my shoelaces," Will groaned comically. It was too cute for Nico.

Nico rolled his eyes. "Man up, Solace. Jason, the Hades and Apollo cabins will join your cause. Don't ask me to shadow travel to get the flag though. I'm under strict doctor's and boyfriend's orders not to."

The son of Jupiter nodded, his eyes shining with happiness as he took in the way Nico was finally able to act like a kid again instead of one that had grown too fast and seen far too much. He was also happy that Nico finally got together with Solace.

"That's fine with me. Everyone's heading towards the weapon shed, or getting their own weapons and suiting up right now, so when you're done with your romantic moment get there as soon as possible! The sun will be setting in twenty minutes and that's when the game will begin."

"Got it, Grace," Nico said. "I'll be there soon so we can kick Jackson's behind."

Will and Jason smiled crookedly, the latter of the two raising a hand in goodbye before diving back into the underbrush. The healer, an amused expression on his face as he grabbed Nico's hand, pulled the dark-haired demigod onto his feet.

"Stay by me during the game tonight?" He asked while giving Nico his puppy eyes.

A smirk split Nico's face. "Of course, Sunshine. I wouldn't want you captured within the first few minutes of the game or getting attacked by Ares campers."

"Hey!" Will protested. "Clarisse and I are friends, you know. She'd go easy on me."

Rolling his eyes, Nico let Will have that before telling him to grab the stuff he'd brought and get a move on. It'd been a long time since he played capture the flag because last game, Will refused to let him play, and this time around he was itching for some fighting (not that Will had to know).

By the time both teams got in their positions the sun was halfway over the horizon. The red team, also known as Jason's team, had put the flag on top of Zeus' Fist while the blue team's flag was sitting in a clearing far on the other side of the forest. In just a few minutes the sun would fully set and each team would be searching for the other's flag.

"Will, Nico, I want you two to guard the flag." Jason instructed. "Some of the Demeter kids will be hiding in the trees and bushes nearby ready to swoop in if you need help. The rest of the cabins and I will be searching for the blue flag, keeping the other team busy, and trying to create chaos while leading them off course."

The healer nodded dutifully while Nico just yawned. He would rather be searching for the flag as well, but knowing the boy with the mop of blonde hair beside him, they would be caught rather quickly. If Nico went he could blend with the darkness around them; however, he wanted to stay with Will and the gods knew the healer would get himself put in game jail in seconds. Perhaps if Lou Ellen were on their team the Mist would help with his stealth, but considering she wasn't, their best bet was to be on the defensive.

Nico stayed alert and he remembered his surroundings, just in case Lou Ellen tried something with the Mist. She had said once that an alert enemy was hard to fool. Hazel could fool anyone, but that was an exception. She had a way with the Mist that nobody else had.

He heard a rustling in the woods, a snap of a twig. Nico drew his Stygian iron sword, getting into a battle stance. Will drew his bow and notched an arrow. The tips were blunt, so they wouldn't draw blood; however, they could leave extremely nasty bruises. Nico heard another rustle.

A random Ares camper charged at him. Nico raised his sword and intercepted his strike. He used the leverage of height to push his sword down and kicked the guy backwards. He kept coming at him though, and Nico jumped to avoid the sword coming at his legs. The Ares kid recovered quickly and he completed the turn, swinging at Nico again. As their swords clashed, Nico grunted and kicked the older demigod in the shins. He used it to slip behind him and extend his legs, hitting him in the back of the knee. The camper's legs buckled and Nico retreated back in the general direction of the flag, keeping alert just in case Lou was there.

In the corner of his eye, he could see Will firing a blunt arrow at an intruder. Nico sprinted toward her and knocked her javelin out of her hand. He threw it into a tree, not wanting to break it, and slammed the butt of his sword against her head. He turned his attention back to the Ares camper and did the same, effectively rendering the two unconscious. He was panting and he abstained from sitting down. Nico looked around again. Will was on the other side of the flag, and he could see a Demeter kid tripping some random Hermes kid. He peered closer and saw that it was Cecil.

He caught the eye of a Demeter kid, motioned for her to tie Cecil up, and saw her passing the message along. As soon as he was tied up, Nico relaxed slightly. That is, until a Morpheus camper came at him. He deftly blocked the slash of the sword and drove the guy back about five feet. He stumbled and was trapped by some vines. Katie Gardner had a wicked expression on her face. Nico could see her tripping people left and right, but she looked tired.

Meanwhile, Will was calmly firing arrows. He was glad that his bow was enchanted so that it wouldn't run out of arrows. Will was taken by surprise when a Hermes camper (he saw the perpetrator as Connor Stoll) raced past him and grabbed the flag. He turned back and sprinted out of the clearing, Travis following him and causing mass chaos. Will cursed and hoped that Jason had gotten the flag. A surge of relief rushed through his being when Connor was tripped by Katie. "THAT WAS FOR MY GARDEN!" She yelled. Will ran over and wrenched the flag from his grip. He returned it to its spot and looked over at Nico.

He was slashing with his sword, dodging, rolling, and taking down everyone who tried to get at the flag. At least five unconscious campers lay on the ground. Will smiled but reluctantly turned his attention back to the fight on his side. Katie had taken her sword out and was fighting with Connor. However, she couldn't use her power over plants and fight at the same time. Travis was running circles around her.

Or at least he was until Will fired an arrow at his head. It his him in the forehead and he was unconscious. Katie snickered, seeing the red welt that was already forming on his head. Will knelt down and healed him enough so that he didn't have a concussion. He decided to do this with the other unconscious campers. By the time he finished, he was a little drained, but still good enough to fight.

Nico was blending into the shadows, running around and smashing the flat of his blade against various demigods' heads, rendering them dazed or unable to fight. After about seven people were on the ground, no more came at them. Nico sighed and walked around the flag, breathing hard. After about fifteen minutes, they heard whooping coming from a voice that sounded suspiciously like Jason. A cheer was heard.

 _The flag_ , thought Nico. Jason and some Hephaestus campers burst into the clearing. "Nico, Will, Demeter Cabin! You guys can come down. We got the flag!"

Nico peered at it, and to his surprise, instead of a lightning bolt that symbolized Zeus, a flaming hammer decorated the flag. The fabric shimmered as if it was made of fire. Nico had to admit, it was a beautiful design. Nyssa and Leo looked extremely proud of themselves. Nico did not fail to see a tiny, shimmering bird automaton that zoomed around the two campers' heads.

He jumped when Will came up behind him and snaked an arm around his waist. "Nice fighting, Death Boy."

Nico smirked. "Yeah, I was better than you. How many people did you manage to fight at once, huh?"

Will took his arm off of Nico's waist, causing him to pout. "I shot a lot of people. But you, Mister di Angelo -" Nico frowned at Will's name for him, "- have caused me and the other Apollo campers some problems. Did you know that?"

Nico looked truly puzzled. "Um, what?" He tilted his head, and Will blushed. Nico was so cute.

Will tut-tutted. "All those unconscious people will have to be dragged into the infirmary and healed."

Nico gave him a blank stare and scoffed. "You can just heal them while they're on the ground. Oh, look, they're already healed." Nico pointed, and Will's gaze followed him.

"Why, so they have been." Will smiled sheepishly. "But at least you're here and not one of the ones on the ground. Come on, let's get out of here." He wrinkled his nose. It smelled like sweat in this clearing.

"We're still a good team, Solace. Don't you forget it. Now, come on."

Nico grabbed his hand and led him out of the way. It was dark by now. The younger of the two sat down on a rocky outcrop that you could see the stars from. Even though, Will noticed, the light of New York polluted the view, it was still beautiful.

Will took Nico's hand in his again. "Hey... you know what?"

Nico looked at him, noticing how the moonlight shone through his blonde hair. He noticed how the stars were reflected in his glassy blue eyes, and he most definitely saw where Will's shirt had ridden up, giving him a little view of the older demigod's lean stomach. Thank the gods it was dark, or Will would have seen Nico blushing. "What?" Nico said, trying not to make his voice waver.

Will pressed himself up to Nico. "I hated you when I first met you." Will rubbed the back of his neck. "I hated how you dressed. I hated the way you talked back, and the way you broke the rules. I was a golden child of Apollo, the one who never so much as put a toe across the line. But I was also interested. I'd never really met anyone who ate as unhealthily as you did, or dressed in such dark colors, so I stuck around."

He continued, "I got to know you for who you were, not for what you've done in the past. I don't care that you have basically saved the world. I care about you, Nico."

Nico blushed furiously. He hugged Will, which was a little awkward because they were lying down on a rock, looking at the stars. Will reciprocated the hug, though, and Nico buried his face in Will's shoulder. "I care about you too," he murmured. Even though his voice was a bit muffled, Will could understand. He smiled and kissed the top of Nico's head.

He immediately regretted it because Nico stiffened up. He got his answer when Nico gave a satisfied sigh and relaxed. "You startled me, Will," said the shorter demigod.

"What can I say?" questioned Will. "My good looks are startling." Nico pulled away a bit and smacked him on the head. He sat up and leaned against the rocks. He stretched one leg out, keeping the other bent. He crossed his arms over his knee.

"That's not what I meant," he complained. Will sat up and assumed a similar position to the son of Hades'. He leaned against Nico and grinned. Even though Nico couldn't see his face, he looked at him and kept smiling. When Nico turned his face toward Will's, the latter stuck his tongue out.

"You just don't want to admit how hot I am, huh?" He challenged. Nico sighed in defeat.

"Sure I don't. Yeah, we both know I'm so much hotter than you, Will."

"True, but... wait... I don't have a good comeback!" Said Will. Nico chuckled and wrapped an arm around the son of Apollo.

"You don't need a comeback, Will," he assured. Pretty soon, the two demigods were leaning against each other and talking about random stuff in general. Maybe this relationship was one that Nico could be accepted into.

Whatever the case was, the two demigods were happy. And for Nico, for the first time in his life, happiness wasn't so much of a long shot.

Hey! So, tell us what you thought about the story. Stay tuned for more, in case we write a sequel.

Hint: There will be many angry puns.


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